This invention relates to prevention of "drive-away" damage to gasoline station dispensers. Gasoline stations using self-service dispensers commonly suffer damage from customers neglecting to remove the nozzle and hose from the car before driving away.
The "drive-away" incident has become more common with the advent of self-service fueling, self-cutoff nozzles (which shut off when the tank fills, as now required by law), and convenience stores which distract the gasoline buyer from the fueling task.
Damage from a drive-away can vary from minor to extensive, with repair bills from $50.00 to over $10,000.00 and more if a fire is involved as a result of pulling over a dispenser. Personal injury can be incurred as an innocent customer is hit by the recoiling nozzle.
Environmental damage due to gasoline spills due to a drive-away incident is common. At the least, there will be evaporation of spilled gasoline. In worse cases, the gasoline spill often of several gallons will run off the concrete apron and contaminate the soil. Finally again there is the possibility of fire and smoke damage.
The modern fuel dispenser is an expensive and sophisticated device. It incorporates the pump with precision measurement devices, microprocessor controlled communications to the central control center inside the gas station office, and electronic displays to the customer. Within the dispenser one sees an array of plumbing in the lower part, and in the distinct "electrical" compartment (for fire protection) a jumble of circuit boards and wiring harnesses. This modern fuel dispenser was priced in 1993 typically just under $20,000.00.
These drive-away incidents may be thought laughable and unusual, but they are a monthly occurrence at any large service station. A typical repair bill is $500.00 to $1,000.00, which must be collected from the car owner or be absorbed by the service station owner.
One attempted solution has been to provide "breakaway" hose connectors that are designed to fail at few hundred pounds of tension, such as to avoid pulling over the dispenser. The breakaway devices themselves are expensive, and are only a means to limit the damage.
It is an object of this invention to provide a device to prevent such damage by speaking a warning message "REMOVE THE NOZZLE FROM THE TANK!" to the customer if it appears he has stopped pumping and has not replaced the pump nozzle at the dispenser.
It is another object of this invention to provide other prerecorded messages to the customer, which could be used at will by the station owner either to provide an educational safety warning or to advertise the stations "special of the week".
Other objects, advantages, features and results of the invention will appear in the course of the following description.